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Jan 31, 2015

Stalls make Oakland sound like the hippest place in Cali, man. They've infused a very once-thought-to-be East Coast or New York vibe to Oaktown's repertoire and I can't be happier to know it's happening all of forty-some-odd miles from my current location. All the tones are clean yet foreboding and the bass (probably the highlight here) moves nimbly through each tune. The only bit that's murky are Sam's vocals. Anyone can clearly hear this dude has an enviable set of pipes (cross between Ian Curtis and Nick Cave) yet he's chosen to obscure them proper. They're the loudest yet most distorted element in the mix.

Stalls share a drummer (Nick Clark) and a label (Vacant Stare) with Mall Walk. Vacant Stare's roster should be able to take over all of CA if they wish and certainly much further reaches. They're a lethal combo, man. No one's recovering from what these bands assemble; Stalls woo with pizzazz/mystery and Mall Walk break hearts with tales of loss.

Interesting to Note: Stalls' Sam Weiss shares a name with a character that the ever-badass Kevin Corrigan once played on TV's Fringe.

Blood Sister create dizzying, menacing synth pop. They really get into it, making certain notes wail and soar as some guitarists would. It might be the soundtrack to the high-tech invasion. 'Dysphoria' is a strong debut musically not to mention the realm of cover art.

The cover was painted by local SF artist, Tristan Chase Arcelona. As disturbing as it may be, it's one of his tamer pieces. It's a picture worthy of much consideration.

Thoughts On The Cover Art

The band seems to be sharing blood from pricked fingers in a nonchalant unity ritual. The most stylish member, whose knees couldn't be closer together, is flanked on both sides by the others, whom have symmetrically-crossed legs.

The woman on the left is like a proper thirty-something mother-of-two-or-more and the man on the right looks like he could be the owner of a record store or just a barista.

Upon second consideration, the middle woman's look is kinda deceptive. I think her hairdo denotes high fashion, but her clothes are quite dull. The man is wearing an all-black nerd uniform and the mom-ish woman is wearing red/white/blue, like a true suburban creature.

The wallpaper looks like it could be circuitry and there's what very well could be a blank, framed canvas, elevated just enough that only the bottom quarter of it is in frame.

The three plates set before these three people and the contents atop each presents many questions as is most likely their intent.

So he sings, "Take it easy. I won't forget the little something that make sense when only Frank Sinatra sings in song." I could be wrong, but I don't think any of Frank's tunes featured a harmonica. But to that, I'm sure, Trevor would sing, "I don't care. Rules don't apply." He has everything covered here. His checklist is fulfilled.

I'm all about hyperbole so even though it's still only January (31st), I'm gonna predict that, in terms of 7" releases, it won't get any better than Sir Ty Segall's 'Mr. Face'. Firstly, it's Ty Fucking Segall at his finest, jamming acoustically. Secondly, we get double-the-pleasure as this is a four-sided, two disc set. All these tunes are great, need to be heard, and need to be bought by Segall completionists. Thank you, Famous Class Records!

Jan 28, 2015

Canadians can kick out the jams, man. In my world, their musical output surpasses any sports or alcoholic feat they've ever accomplished. I'm pleased to feature Viet Cong's debut LP as my first review of 2015.

Five years ago, I paid absolutely no attention to Women and now I'm going to track down all that I missed. Not that Women weren't heralded; they surely were, but not universally. I guess I was still deciding whether or not I could trust those who might have ears specifically for lo-fi trash, as if their fandom would cloud true criticism.

This is the first time I've heard the studio-as-instrument approach to post-punk since No Age's 'Everything In Between'. 'Viet Cong' shares many similarities to that album, especially regarding drum sonics. Viet Cong seems to go far beyond No Age's vision however, introducing a tapestry of elements, creating dreadful, urgent, hypnotic, emotional vignettes within most songs. The album clocks in at thirty-seven minutes but there is so much sound to consider that, upon first listen, it feels more like ninety. It's also curious that the vocals are stylistically akin to fellow Canadian, Spencer Krug.

Historically, the Viet Cong were a communist regime that the USA was certain it had to fight. That particular decision left a ton of psychological chaos in its' wake. It became a wound that has yet to heal and may never. 'Viet Cong' sets out to leave such an impression as that infamous conflict and succeeds at every turn. This album is a bona-fide classic, always to be remembered in the annals of post-punk. Good thing it's only January 'cause it's gonna take me the rest of the year to digest everything they've crammed into this beauty.